


Jolene's Story

by Haberdasher



Category: Jolene - Dolly Parton (Song)
Genre: Acephobia, Aromantic, Asexual Character, Asexuality, Backstory, Gen, Jealousy, POV Female Character
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-14
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-22 21:41:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 586
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30045144
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Haberdasher/pseuds/Haberdasher
Summary: The story behind Jolene, and why she never had any interest in taking the man of the song’s singer.
Relationships: Jolene & Narrator (Jolene), Man/Narrator (Jolene)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 6





	Jolene's Story

Jolene was born beautiful, and though all those around her saw it as a blessing, she always thought of it as a curse.

It wasn’t so bad when she was just a child; all she had to endure back then was strangers stopping and remarking upon her beauty as she grimaced and pulled to go home, people saying what a lovely young lady she would become one day.

Then Jolene _became_ a lovely young lady, and those comments weren’t so innocent anymore.

All her female friends saw her as a threat, giving her the silent treatment as soon as they found boyfriends for fear of her stealing them away; all her male friends saw her as a seductress in training, saw their friendship with her as merely a gateway to something else, something _more_. Jolene had no interest in that something more, had no interest in going from friendship to something else, but no matter how often she explained as much, her guy friends still made the same assumptions time and time again.

Her family didn’t understand her disinterest, either, always asking if she had found a boyfriend yet, saying that a nice young woman like her should have no trouble finding one. Perhaps they were right about that, but Jolene didn’t particularly care to test that theory just for the sake of finding out for sure.

Every man she passed looked her way in adoration, every woman by those men’s side gave her dirty looks, and all Jolene could do was shrug shoot them a sheepish smile and walk away.

Jolene made do, though. She found a fulfilling job, bought a house in a small town, settled in by herself and ignored her neighbors’ gossip as best she could. Time passed, and though her family “joked” that she was becoming a spinster, or that perhaps she was seeking female companions given her lack of interest in men, Jolene lived life with no romantic partner at all. It was a lonely life, perhaps, but it seemed as though that was the best that she could do, given the circumstances.

Then the day came when one of Jolene’s neighbors came to her door with a request she had not anticipated, and her blood ran cold. The woman gave her the same empty praise of her good looks as always, saying her beauty was beyond compare, and Jolene had to stop herself from saying that she wished she could trade places with the average-looking woman before her, that she wished her beauty wasn’t always seen as turning others’ romantic pursuits into a competition they could never win.

The neighbor’s husband, apparently, was talking about Jolene in his sleep, calling her name. Probably not a great sign of their marriage’s stability, especially given that apparently the woman had taken this to mean Jolene _must_ be having an affair with her husband, _must_ be planning to ruin their marriage and steal him away. She barely knew the man, but apparently her mere presence in the neighborhood was enough to stir fantasies in him, and to turn his wife against her in turn.

Jolene wanted to scream, wanted to cry, wanted to run into the woods and never come back, because surely life as a hermit couldn’t be as bad as _this_ , could it?

Instead, Jolene smiled blandly and reassured the woman that she had no interest in taking her man before closing the door, letting out a soft sigh as soon as the neighbor woman was no longer in earshot.

**Author's Note:**

> If you liked this, consider following me on tumblr at [haberdashing](https://haberdashing.tumblr.com/)!


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